Mary Lynn Rajskub

After receiving her start in performing arts and comedy theater, actress Mary Lynn Rajskub made a name for herself as one of the original members of the sketch comedy series, "Mr. Show" (HBO, 1995-99)...
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Actress Mary Lynn Rajskub got a shocking insight into Britain's notorious boozing culture when she had to shoot dawn scenes for TV hit 24 while surrounded by drunks fresh from a nightclub.
The star, who plays agent Jack Bauer's terrorism-busting colleague Chloe O'Brian in the drama, headed to the U.K. capital earlier this year (13) to film the new series, 24: Live Another Day. Many scenes were shot in the dead of night in a bid to deter onlookers, but Rajskub soon realised there is no such thing as a quiet evening in London when revellers spilling out of nightclubs at 5am crowded around the cameras.
She tells U.K. TV show This Morning, "I just love filming in London... We start filming at five in the morning, so there's just people coming from the clubs - just, like, a few drunk people walking by. And then by seven, eight, nine o'clock there's a whole group of people surrounding the car - fans and stuff. So that's interesting."

Actress Mary Lynn Rajskub had a rude awakening after heading to London to shoot a new series of 24 when she had to film scenes in plunging temperatures and driving rain. The star, who plays computer expert Chloe O'Brian opposite Kiefer Sutherland in the action-packed drama, returns this month (May14) in a new season of the show, dubbed 24: Live Another Day.
Rajskub was among castmembers who jetted to London to begin location shoots in January (14) in the depths of winter, and she was taken aback when she realised the British filming crew expected the cameras to keep on rolling in all weather.
Rajskub, who usually films her scenes for 24 in sun-kissed Los Angeles, tells U.K. TV show Lorraine, "Everything is different here. It's grittier. I think the crew is more hardcore. You know, we are out in the freezing cold and rain and they didn't even bat an eye. Just like pulling trash bags up - like, 'Alright, let's go!'."
However, her co-star Sutherland appears to have had a much better experience during his time living in the city, adding, "My whole experience here has been fantastic. I think the key to London is finding a nice place to live, and I'm very happy where I'm at and I love my neighbourhood.
"People have been amazing and really respectful. People come up and ask, 'How's the show going?' and things like that but it feels like you're being invited into a neighbourhood instead of being chased around and things like that. So I've had an amazing time here. I can't speak highly enough for the experience (sic)."

Top Brits Andrew Garfield and Chris Martin shared a passionate clinch as part of a U.S. TV Spider-Man skit on Saturday night (03May14). Saturday Night Live host Garfield and Coldplay frontman Martin, the show's musical guest, locked lips as the singer attempted to show the actor and his real-life and movie girlfriend Emma Stone how to kiss as they prepared for a fictional Spider-Man scene.
Excited Stone puckered up for the test smooch and mocked surprise and disappointment when Martin demonstrated with her boyfriend instead of her.
The rocker even donned a blonde wig as he held Garfield in his arms and said, "Now you listen to me, you beautiful spidery man, with great power comes great responsibility and our responsibility right now is to make sweet, sweet love. So why don't you go ahead and show me that beautiful tongue."
As the actor resisted, Martin said, "Come on, come to papa!"
The actress also appeared at the top of the show, joining Garfield for his monologue on his SNL debut, offering her beau some hosting advice.
The Brit showed off his comedy skills on the show by portraying a camera-hogging Justin Timberlake in an 'all-star' version of game show Family Feud and a man on the run from "The Beygency" for criticising Beyonce at a dinner party in a skit that also featured 24 co-stars Kiefer Sutherland and Mary Lynn Rajskub.
Sutherland revealed his Jack Bauer character was also on the run after having a tattoo of Rihanna inked on his chest.

Actress Mary Lynn Rajskub has her fame from hit action show 24 to thank for helping her avoid jail after a police officer agreed to let her go, despite discovering she had a warrant out for her arrest. The Julie & Julia star reveals she recently landed in trouble with a traffic cop after forgetting to register her car with the U.S. Department of Motor Vehicles, but she was saved from being hauled into custody when the officer recognised her from her role opposite Kiefer Sutherland, who plays counter-terrorism agent Jack Bauer.
She recalls, "The (cop) pulls me over and he says what (the warrant) is for and I'm like, 'Really?' and then he thought I was making fun of him so he was like, 'Get out of the car!' (But), then he recognised me, thank God, because it totally saved me from being put in the slammer for being a smart a**.
"(So) then he was like, 'Oh, you're that computer girl from that show. My friends call me Jack Bauer.' Thank God I held my tongue because inside I was like, 'Oh really? You mean you make your friends call you Jack Bauer?... You're not Jack Bauer'."

Kiefer Sutherland brought chaos to the streets of London this week (beg20Jan14) as he filmed scenes for his rebooted TV show 24. The actor has swapped the U.S. for the British capital for 24: Live Another Day, the first new installment of the thriller in four years, and he was seen filming dramatic scenes in east London on Wednesday (22Jan14) with his longtime co-star Mary Lynn Rajskub.
A number of roads around Whitechapel were closed to traffic during the day, as the crew filmed close to an upturned black taxi, which was pictured exploding in front of startled onlookers.
Sutherland was seen waving a prop gun while covered in fake blood.
24: Live Another Day will premiere in the summer (14).

Paramount via Everett Collection
After nine long seasons on The Office, Craig Robinson is getting a serious promotion. The actor's upcoming comedy project, tentatively titled Mr. Robinson, has received a six episode order from the network. Robinson will play a newly appointed music teacher who inspires kids with the wonders of music and also learns how to bend certain rules at his new place of employment.
Seeing Robinson rewarded with his own show after such a long stint as a supporting character has us wondering what other perennial supporting players are in dire need of their own starring comedy vehicle.
Judy GreerA supporting player on Arrested Development and in every romantic comedy movie ever, Greer is comedic dynamite and is long overdue for her own sitcom... one with a longer lifespan than the appropriately titled Miss Guided.
Paul ScheerScheer has guest starred in a bevy of comedies over the years, and has a supporting role on The League has us craving to see the actor front and center in his own comedy.
Patton OswaltPatton Oswalt spent years as a supporting character on King of Queens, and even though he has a wildly successful stand-up career, it would be great to see the comedian come back to to television (his Wonder Years-style voice-over on The Goldbergs doesn't count).
Damon Wayans Jr.Wayans put in great work in Happy Endings and as Coach on the current season of New Girl, but the actor has more than enough charm and comedic chops to carry his own sitcom.
John OliverThis British funnyman was an old standby for years on The Daily Show and is seriously underutilized Community. Imagine Professor Ian Duncan with his own show.
Chris ParnellThe fact that the world has gone this long without a Dr. Leo Spaceman spin-off shows that there's something seriously wrong with the the universe.
Mary Lynn RajskubRajskub appears in at least one episode of all your favorite TV shows. She has shown up as recurring characters on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Arrested Development, The King of Queens, Raising Hope, and Modern Family, not to mention her supporting role in 24. She's definitely deserves a steady gig at the head of a project.
Seth MorrisMorris was great as the wonderfully chipper Danny on NBC's short lived Go On. We can definitely see the actor starring in his own successful project.
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Showtime
Eventually, every party must come to an end. Showtime has announced that the seventh season of its hit show Californication will be the last. The news may come as a bit of a surprise to many fans, as the show's ratings have grown steadily every season since beginning its run in 2007, and boasted its highest ratings yet during last year's sixth season. Californication, which follows David Duchovny as writer and womanizer Hank Moody as he attempts to juggle his career, his daughter, and his love life, has won two Emmys and a Golden Globe for Duchovny's performance. However, according to the network, creator Tom Kapinos feels that the show has simply run its course.
In a statement, Showtime's Entertainment President David Nevins assures fans that "[Kapinos] has carefully planned the final chapter of Hank's journey and has brought it to a beautiful and satisfying conclusion for new and longtime fans alike," and that the network was proud to have the show on its roster, saying "With its unique blend of lyricism and excess, Californication has been one of our groundbreaking signature series. We will always be indebted to Tom Kapinos for leading the creative charge on this memorable comedy, and to David Duchovny for making us root for an unapologetic hedonist like Hank Moody."
In Californication's final season, Hank will be working as a writer on a television show based on his film Santa Monica Cop, which was never released. Sopranos star Michael Imperioli will guest star as his antagonistic boss, and his fellow writers will be played by Mary Lynn Rajskub and Alonzo Bodden. Heather Graham is also set for an arc, and will play an old friend of Hank's who re-enters his life to stir up trouble.
Californication's final, 12-episode season will premiere in April 2014.
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Actors Kim Raver and William Devane are set to reprise their roles for 24: Live Another Day. The stars were last seen in the 24 season six finale when Keifer Sutherland's anti-terrorism expert character Jack Bauer bid farewell to Raver's catatonic character Audrey Raines, the daughter of the show's U.S. Secretary of Defense, James Heller (Devane).
Mary Lynn Rajskub will also return as Chloe O'Brian in the 2014 12-part series, which will be shot on location in London.

Mary Lynn Rajskub is reprising her role as Chloe O'Brian in the upcoming 24 TV series. The actress has signed on to play the tech-savvy character opposite Kiefer Sutherland in 24: Live Another Day.
The original 24 producer/director Howard Gordon has also announced he'll be returning for the drama, which is scheduled to hit TV screens early next year (14).
Rajskub, who joined the original series in its third season, says, "I am thrilled to be working with Howard and the writers again - and, of course, Kiefer! There's a lot more room to grow in my character. I'm going to start sharpening my computer skills now."

The field of counter-terrorism just got a whole lot more interesting. Mary Lynn Rajskub is returning as snarky intel analyst, computer-screen starer, and Jack Bauer protector Chloe O’Brian for Fox’s limited run 24: Live Another Day, set to debut next spring. Rajskub will join Kiefer Sutherland and showrunner Howard Gordon for the new episodes.
No one knows how Live Another Day will be structured. It won’t run for 24 episodes, so it definitely will not maintain the 24-hours-in-continuous-real-time format that defined the series and lent it it’s title. But the return of Rajskub has gotta make fans feel like this will still be the 24 we knew and loved, since she provided some of the original run’s very best moments: when she unexpectedly picked up a machine gun and blew away an assassin in Day 4; coming to Jack’s rescue at the start of Day 5…okay, practically all the time; that weird occasion she started randomly taking care of a baby at the office. Okay, maybe not that last one.
But considering how many action procedurals of the past decade have relied upon the tired people-staring-into-computer-screens trope, Mary Lynn Rajskub stands out from the pack for elevating that cliché to an art. Someone looking at a monitor was never more interesting than when Chloe O’Brian did so. We can’t wait to see what the techie will be up to next.
Follow Christian Blauvelt on Twitter @Ctblauvelt | Follow Hollywood.com on Twitter @Hollywood_com
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First feature, voicing a female caller in "The Truth About Cats and Dogs"

Became an original cast member of HBO's "Mr. Show"

Summary

After receiving her start in performing arts and comedy theater, actress Mary Lynn Rajskub made a name for herself as one of the original members of the sketch comedy series, "Mr. Show" (HBO, 1995-99). Rajskub left the show following its debut season in order to replace friend Janeane Garofalo's character on "The Larry Sanders Show" (HBO, 1992-98), playing the show-within-a-show's eager-to-please and often inappropriate guest booker. Having proven herself a dynamic comedic player on the small screen, she made the transition to features with small roles in "Road Trip" (2000) and "Storytelling" (2001) before landing a more significant supporting role opposite Adam Sandler and Emma Watson in "Punch-Drunk Love" (2002). Though most of her career to that point had a comedic bent, Rajskub made the surprising jump to drama with a high-profile supporting turn as the unconventional CTU analyst Chl O'Brian - one of the few people trusted by Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) - on the hit action series, "24" (Fox, 2001-2010). Though she spent most of her time behind a computer terminal aiding Bauer in whatever manner she could, Rajskub earned a loyal following, including within the real-life Homeland Security department which named a research and development program, "Project CHL ," in homage to her character. Both during and after the successful run of "24," Rajskub was featured in several films including "Little Miss Sunshine" (2006), "Sunshine Cleaning" (2008) and "Julie & Julia" (2009), all of which demonstrated the range and versatility of the talented young actress.

Name

Role

Comments

Jon Brion

Companion

Wrote the score for "Magnolia" (1999); together c. 1997; no longer together

Education

Name

San Francisco Art Institute

Notes

Her surname, which is of Czech origin, is pronounced "rice-kub"

"I like the feeling that what happens on stage should be unpredictable. There's nothing better than having people totally relaxed and enjoying what's going on and then sort of gently guiding them into some weird area. But it's not fair just to be weird and obscure. You've got to get the audience involved first. Then get weird on them." - Rajskub to The Los Angeles Times, Nov. 25, 1996

"My comedy act is based on me being uncomfortable, so I got cast as a lot of quirky girls." - Rajskub quoted in People Magazine, May 22, 2006